Let’s talk school packed lunches with Twinings Kids Cold In‘fuse

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From wacky lunchboxes to inventive snacks designed to get your kids to eat well, school packed lunches are a key part of the back to school preparation. It can take a lot of trial and error to make nutritious packed lunches that are also fun and appealing, and anything that makes life easier in this department is often welcomed.

Here’s what Twining’s have to say:
“We all know how difficult it can be to get children to eat well without compromising on fun or filling their lunch boxes with boring meals! That’s why we’ve produced our new Kids Cold In’fuse range, made by using natural ingredients only. Developed in partnership with children, the product offers a fun way to encourage kids to consume more water and is a sugar free alternative to fruit juices and cordials, which can have a high sugar content. By simply adding the infusion bags to their water bottles and giving it a quick shake, children can enhance their water with delicious flavours including; Strawberry Lemonade, Mango & Orange and Blackcurrant & Apple. Not only that, but all the products in the range have been specially developed to ensure that the acidity level is safe for children’s tooth enamel.

As part of the launch, we are supporting Public Health England’s Change4Life campaign, which encourages families to cut back on sugar by making a few simple swaps to everyday food and drink. With children heading back to school this September, we encourage everyone to make the simple swap in their packed lunches and let us know what you think!”

What is your child’s favourite part of their packed lunch? Have you created a fun twist on an otherwise boring snack? Maybe you put a fun note into their lunchbox every so often as a surprise?

Share the fun ways you make your children’s packed lunches appealing on the post below and all who do so will be entered into a prize draw where 1 MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

Samosas, falafel, or sausage pasta salad instead of sandwiches every day.

I am another one who loves to put in a little note, especially when you know they are having a testing time

Used to give my daughter sushi and some fruit never gave her crisps and junk like so many other parents did. Have never had any problems getting her to eat her veg at home.

I use cutters to make my own version of lunchables with cheese, ritz crackers and Quorn ham, usually circles like the real ones but occasionally mix it up with different shapes

I freeze tubes of yoghurt during the warmer months and put in the lunch box to keep the rest of the lunch cool and give them a cool, defrosted, yoghurt instead of a nasty warm one

Cottage cheese and crackers is a favourite

When I first started on Pinterest many years ago I became slightly obsessed with the Japanese lunches of panda faces and cats made of rice and artfully cut veggies.
Back in the real world, the only thing that survives from that time is an egg mould. They squeeze hard boiled eggs into funky shapes but eggs aren’t the best lunch item for a pack up. “ HoofJunior has farted!!’
My aspie son likes consistency so I can’t go too off piste. Sandwich, wrap and fruit or biscuits. Nice and easy.

My DS has soup and lots of hot meals in a flask as he is not a big fan of sandwiches.

Most days my kids have:

Tub of pesto pasta & cheese on top
Small tub of chopped fruit
Crackers or crisps
Yogurt
~
Cheese/ham and crackers
Small tub of chopped fruit
Small chocolate treat
Cucumber and carrot sticks
~
Ham/cheese sandwiches/rolls
Satsuma or apple
Breadsticks
Yogurt
~
Sometimes if we've made cakes I'll pop one in,
If we have left overs e.g. cold sausages I'll chop them up and pop them in a pot.

My son has the same sandwich every day, I try to liven it up with his favourite fruit and alternating snacks, adding yoghurt or a homemade flapjack.

My boy likes to have the same lunch most days, but he can choose what treat and type of sandwiches. That makes sure he eats enough!

DS2 chooses what goes into his lunch bag. This is the first year his school has allowed packed lunches, and they have strict rules. Today he's got sausage and sweetcorn pasta salad, carrot sticks, strawberries and a yoghurt, and the only drink they're allowed is plain water. I always write a joke or "I love you" on the napkin, plus a smiley face which he insists I keep doing, even though he's been able to read for years! 🤣

Oh, and he has some kind of sweet treat on Fridays.

I do a sandwich - and then "spice" up the lunchbox by filling up ( little -almost the size of a matchbox) reusable Tupperware boxe) with small items such as chopped carrot or cucumber; tiny bit of crisps; dried fruit; sweetcorn - basically anything knocking around in the cupboard that needs finishing - always come back empty!
I have found that reinging it in works
and always a bottle of water

my daughter is aware that our "war on plastic" means that there are now not too many extras as we try and avoid plastic (so no frubes; etc)

I make mini fritattas in silicone muffin cases - some left over boiled potato, chorizo for flavour, sweetcorn, chopped broccoli florets and beaten egg, topped with grated cheese and baked fro 20 minutes. I can freeze them, get them out the night before and they will be fine to eat the next day - if they last beyond breakfast.... Teenage DC so getting protein down them can be a battle but they love these.

Silicone cake cases

DS doesn't really like variation and I worry that his lunches are too boring but that's how he likes it!

Ham salad sandwich, yoghurt/frube, apple (token gesture is given towards eating this 😆) rice cakes/crackers/crisps which he is happy to vary, a cake bar of some sort

As much as I try to deviate from sandwiches, both my boys love them, so that's what they have

We sometimes do themed snacks, like for halloween when we might do devilled eggs, melon cut into bat shapes, mixed fruits in raspberry jelly that turn their tongues red.

I give my dc rolls usually because he prefers them. I’m lucky because he doesn’t have a major sweet tooth but unlucky in that he won’t eat fruit or veg.
So as a compromise I put a packet of fruit flakes in his lunchbox and that suits us both.
He’s very good at drinking water and so we don’t have to worry about tussles over pure fruit juices.

I add frubes (yogurt tubes) to their packed lunch as a 'treat' food.

My boys both love wraps, they like to choose the fillings but we mix it up with rolls or sandwiches (they don’t always want the same everyday). The rest of their lunch box is a colourful and varied mix of fruit and veg sticks and a small cake or biscuit snack, lucky for me they both love fruit and veg.

Mini wraps with meat/cheese/peppers/lettuce/cucumber. Make their own at school and eat lots of veg. And a good selection of containers make it more exciting too.

My daughters like a cheese sandwich with wholemeal bread, some fruit such as cut up peach/plum, berries and Greek yoghurt, and another snack like olives, hummus and carrot sticks, raisins and sometimes a banana. I try and make it a bit different each day and use bento boxes. Getting some great ideas from this thread

We choose something new to bake together at the weekend. It keeps lunchboxes interesting.

Something quick like ham, cheese and egg tortillas. Great for a snack, just pop in the lunch box

I like all the suggestions on here especially the reusable wraps as I find I use a lot of foil etc to keep it fresh and stop it drying out. I use different breads such as flatbreads and wraps to keep it interesting. I fin though that DS just wants an apple for his fruit as he wants to take it outside and get on with playing with his friends! One child isn’t too bothered by variety but the other one is.